Vehicle roofs, and specifically sliding sunroofs or folding roof systems, may employ air deflectors to improve air flow conditions over the vehicle when the cover of the roof system is in an open position. The air deflector is usually arranged on a front edge, with respect to the travel direction of the vehicle, of the roof opening that is closed by the cover. The air deflector can also be conveyed from a lowered position, in which it is located beneath the outer surface of the vehicle roof, to a raised position when the cover is opened.
The air deflector can employ a flexible web or fabric as a deflector element and arrange the deflector element between two holding elements. A first holding element is fixedly attached to the vehicle roof and the second holding element can move between a lowered and a raised position. If the second holding element is in its lowered position, then the deflector element can be folded to save space due to its flexibility. The result is a compact assembly, especially with respect to the overall height of the deflector element.
The flexible deflector element has one disadvantage, however, it does not fold up in a self-controlling fashion. Thus, a comparatively large amount of space must be made available to allow the deflector element to move freely within its range when the second holding element is conveyed to the lowered position without the deflector element coming into conflict with other components of the sliding sunroof system. Alternatively, if such a large amount of space is not available, the deflector element must be secured in another way so that the deflector element does not collide with other components when the second holding element is placed in the lowered position.
There is a desire for an air deflector structure that can control movement of the deflector element without experiencing the disadvantages encountered in currently-known structures.